Gaming machines have long been a significant facet of the gaming industry. One of the most basic implementations of a gaming machine is an electromechanical device employing either a mechanically rotatable wheel or a video image of a rotating wheel. One example of such a gaming machine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,874 which discloses a gaming machine comprising a plurality of reels (i.e., wheels), each of which have a plurality of symbols on their periphery. The reels independently spin and ultimately stop to display a random combination of the symbols. If the display contains one of a preselected plurality of winning combinations, the machine will determine a value payout corresponding to the combination of symbols displayed.
Another example of such a gaming machine is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,334,814 which discloses a gaming machine comprising both a primary game using a plurality of reels, each of which have a plurality of symbols displayed on their periphery, as well as a bonus indicator in the form of a rotatable wheel. The disclosed bonus wheel is a carnival-type wheel that is motor driven and linked to a random value generator to randomly determine where the wheel will stop. The bonus wheel is further linked to a controller to gradually reduce the rate of spin prior to stopping in order to simulate a mechanical spinning wheel.